Mano-A-Mano Volume VI: The Battle for I-95

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Somehow, someway, a game that seemed like a pipe-dream a month ago has evolved into THE must-see event on campus this month. Suddenly, the worlds of professional sports and Penn Athletics are colliding, and we can proudly say that our school, our Palestra will soon be the center of the basketball universe. So before someone pinches us, let's talk the upcoming Team Philly vs. Team Melo scrimmage ("The Battle for I-95") and its impact on the Penn basketball program.

Question: How will the Sept. 25th event at the Palestra help Penn's efforts to revitalize its storied basketball program?

Brian Kotloff: I know it may seem like a stretch to suggest that an NBA scrimmage could impact Penn Basketball, no matter how much excitement this announcement is creating around campus. After all, who wouldn't be thrilled to host some of the world's greatest athletes in your own backyard? And isn't student interest in the Ivy League, not the NBA, the real issue? To me, this game transcends these questions. This game has Penn sports fans — and maybe even casual observers familiar with the celebrity status of LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony — legitimately buzzing about an athletic event on campus. That's a good start.

But where this event will truly make its mark on this campus is in the promotion of the Palestra. Our cathedral was integral to making this happen, and students will recognize that. Hakim Warrick said the Palestra was his first choice as a venue. "When you think of Philly," he said, "... you think of the Palestra." A major part of the problem with student interest and attendance is that current and future students do not appreciate the historical significance of their school's basketball program and its home arena. Now LeBron James — perhaps the most famous, captivating, electrifying athlete in the world right now —wants to come play here. He wouldn't even participate in the dunk contest, and now he's taking on the pressure of performing against his biggest rivals in one of the country's best basketball venues. The message that sends can be invaluable in getting students to re-discover the Palestra as THE place to be on game nights.

Kevin Esteves: Exactly right. And with the Palestra “quaking” for all of Philly and the tri-state area to hear (as the game's organizer, Rahim Thompson, put it), this event will create buzz that goes far beyond our campus, as well. In fact, I think the biggest takeaway from this whole event won’t be the jaw-dropping highlights a team of LeBron, Durant, Melo and CP3 will provide but just the memory of the atmosphere of the Palestra that night. That alone will have the non-students in attendance also talking — imagine the excitement during last year’s triple-OT Harvard game times 100 — and may compel them to come back to the Palestra when Penn basketball starts up again. So now you add some more fans in the seats, enhancing the game-day atmosphere (which can then hype up the players even more in-game and motivate them to success).

Then think about the impact this could have on recruiting. First of all, from a branding perspective, you’re associating Penn basketball with top-flight NBA talent, and the players' presence alone tells you that, yeah, playing at the Palestra is something even NBA superstars want to do (best recruiting pitch ever?). It’s also, as Thompson explained, an example that demonstrates “how involved, how committed to basketball Penn is.” From what I understand, once Hakim Warrick mentioned the Palestra as a possible destination for this, Penn did what it could to make this happen, even forgoing the option to charge a rental fee. The school and the basketball program wanted this to happen because this is what I believe the Palestra is all about in their minds: being the epicenter of Philly basketball. If this game helps cement that status, I’m sure you have a whole lot of student-athletes, coaches, and parents who want to be a part of that legacy and tradition.

BK: You said everything else I wanted to say about this topic. This is some sort of Bizarro, pacifist Mano-A-Mano where I agree wholeheartedly with all of your opinions. Just wait till next Wednesday, though. The fire will return.

KE: I ain't never scared.